The secret, though, that surrounded my parents’ unhappy life together, was divulged to me by accident . . .’ Hidden under some papers in his father’s bureau, the sixteen-year-old Derek Malcolm finds a book by the famous criminologist Edgar Lustgarten called The Judges and the Damned. Browsing through the Contents pages Derek reads, ‘Mr Justice McCardie tries Lieutenant Malcolm – page 33.’ But there is no page 33. The whole chapter has been ripped out of the book. Slowly but surely, the shocking truth emerges: that Derek’s father, shot his wife’s lover and was acquitted at a famous trial at the Old Bailey. The trial was unique in British legal history as the first case of a crime passionel, where a guilty man is set free, on the grounds of self-defence. Husband and wife lived together unhappily ever after, raising Derek in their wake. Then, in a dramatic twist, following his father’s death, Derek receives an open postcard from his Aunt Phyllis, informing him that his real father is the Italian Ambassador to London . . . By turns laconic and affectionate, Derek Malcolm has written a richly evocative memoir of a family sinking into hopeless disrepair. Derek Malcolm was chief film critic of the Guardian for thirty years and still writes for the paper. Educated at Eton and Merton College, Oxford, he became first a steeplechase rider and then an actor after leaving university. He worked as a journalist in the sixties, first in Cheltenham and then with the Guardian where he was a features sub-editor and writer, racing correspondent and finally film critic. He directed the London Film Festival for a spell in the 80s and is now President of both the International Film Critics Association and the British Federation of Film Societies. He lives with his wife Sarah Gristwood in London and Kent and has published two books – one on Robert Mitchum and another on his favourite 100 films. He is a frequent broadcaster on radio and television and a veteran of film festival juries all over the world.

    It grew to become a major political force in Italy, while its tentacles penetrated every aspect of life in the United States. Through drugs, it spread its influence to Britain, Canada and Australia. And through the gangster movies of Hollywood, including The Godfather and Goodfellas, it permeates popular culture.The History of the Mafia is full of blood-chilling characters, from Al Capone, who ran Chicago during Prohibition, and hitmen Louis Lekpe and Alberto Anastasia who founded Murder, Inc, to Totò Riina, 'boss of bosses', John Gotti, 'the Teflon don', and Bernardo 'The Tractor' Provenzano, who hid out from the law in a farmhouse for 43 years...These were extraordinary men who lived through extraordinary times. The History of the Mafia tells the story of their lives, their families, their codes, their crimes and their cold-blooded murders. A long and enthralling tale, drenched in blood and scored with betrayal.

    The killer went to great lengths to cover up her crime including sending his grandmother flowers, going to the memorial service, driving by the victim’s house and calling the lead investigator, Detective Esteban Flores. This incident took place in a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona. It would be five years before this case of capital murder would be put in front of a jury to decide the fate of Jodi Arias although the fate of Travis Alexander had been set in stone. Was she a cold, calculating murderess or was she a victim of extreme domestic violence at the hands of an abusive boyfriend? The first jury was left to decide in 2013. It was the most watched trial of the century. The jury decided that Jodi Arias was guilty of first-degree murder with cruel and heinous circumstances which qualified her for the death penalty. The jury could not reach a decision in the penalty phase and justice was delayed. A new jury, drawn from a pool of four hundred people, was drawn for the highly anticipated retrial of Jodi Arias. On October 21, 2014, a jury of nineteen was given the responsibility of deciding whether Jodi Arias should live or die for her crime. So began a retrial that would last almost five months with Juan Martinez and Detective Flores representing the State of Arizona and the return of Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott speaking to the defense of the convicted killer. The journey will walk the reader through the meticulous actions of the courtroom and extend to an appellate court, a municipal court and a day in the in the original courthouse in phoenix, Arizona. The trial speaks toward the long arm of the law and the implications of decisions made daily. With the help of former jurors of the Jodi Arias death penalty retrial, the reader will step into the jury box when Jodi Arias was on the witness stand and reach a climax when the reader accompanies the jury foreman into the deliberation room as the jury decides the fate of the defendant. “The lambs to the law were now executors of the law. It was humbling, intimidating and powerful at the same time. It was also the time that the jurors’ souls would be tested for truths and experiences that would mark many discussions in the deliberation room. The jury would remember Travis Alexander and what was done to him.” Why Not Kill her is the suspenseful follow-up to the authors first book, Brain Damage: A Juror’s Tale, the true story of being a death penalty juror on the case of Marissa DeVault and the brutal killing of Dale Harrell. The third revised edition is now available in honor of Dale Harrell. Take a journey into the life of Travis Alexander and a search for truth and justice. Somehow, Lady Justice will wield her sword and the end of a seven year saga would be realized but in no way that anyone could have anticipated. Special thanks to True Crime Radio, Trial Talk Live, the Trial Diaries, FOX 10, ABC, NBC and CBS. The author would also like to thank those who supported this work on Go Fund Me with extra recognition to the administrators and fans of Juan Martinez Prosecutor Support Page, The State vs. Jodi Arias, Joey Jackson Fan Page, Justice For Travis, Justice 4 Dale, Justice For Travis Alexander and His Family, Court Chatter, Beth Karas on Crime, Gavel geeks, Trial Watchers, The House That Travis Built, Understanding The Travesties of Unexpected Murder Trials and For The Love of Travis. This work could not have happened without your support! Why Not Kill Her is dedicated to Travis Alexander, his family and all those whom he touched in his short life.

    They include a special reader's letter from Karen explaining how the darkness in these stories became more than she could bear and prompted a dramatic career change to write Life-Changing Fiction.Final Vows: When Carol Montecalvo began writing to a man in prison through a program at her church, she considered it her Christian duty. But these letters soon became her lifeline as she fell in love with Dan, the man behind the letters. In Final Vows, Karen Kingsbury chronicles a couple’s unlikely romance and marriage, and what led to Carol's bloody death on her kitchen floor. It seems her husband has obvious motives for murder. But is this former felon really guilty? Or could he actually be a grieving widower, in the wrong place at the wrong time, showing the wrong type of emotions when faced with his wife's lifeless body?Deadly Pretender: CIA Agent. Business Owner. Lobbyist. Bigamist. David Miller was the envy of both friend and foe, with a dream job and perfect family. He seemed to have it all. But he wanted more. One family wasn't enough: he wanted two. Two careers weren't enough; he invented a third. He juggled it all quite well . . . until the day his two wives found out about each other. David Miller groped for ways to hold on to his finances and reputation. His solution? Murder. But it had to be done right, leaving him off the list of suspects.The Snake and the Spider: Florida. Spring Break. Words that evoke excited anticipation for young adults . . . and extreme angst for their parents. But the parents of best friends Daryl Barber and James Boucher were confident their sons could be trusted to spend a week in the sun without them. As they all waved goodbye, no one imagined it would be the last time they'd see each other alive. When the boys missed their agreed-upon daily check-ins, both sets of parents were disappointed. When the boys failed to come home on their planned return date, both sets of parents were furious. And when it was clear the boys had vanished without a trace, both sets of parents were terrified.Missy’s Murder: On an October day, teenager Missy Avila was lured into the woods, beaten, tortured, and drowned. Missy's best friend, Karen, publicly vows to find the killer and even moves in with Missy's family to help. No one could have guessed what would happen next. Missy's Murder is a shocking tale of how jealousy can drive people to acts of great evil.

    Bootlegger bloodshed was greater there than anywhere else. The machine-gun murders of seven men on the morning of February 14, 1929, by killers dressed as cops became the gangland crime of the century. Since then it has been featured in countless histories, biographies, movies, and television specials. The St. Valentine's Day Massacre, however, is the first book-length treatment of the subject. Unlike other accounts, it challenges the commonly held assumption that Al Capone decreed the slayings to gain supremacy in the Chicago underworld. The authors assert the deed was a case of bad timing and poor judgement by a secret crew from St. Louis known to Capone's mostly Italian mob as the American boys.

    Once the old, cantankerous Sam Clevenger and his wife, Charlotte, hired Frank Willson and John Johnson to help with the move, their fate took a dark turn. These true events were documented by journalists through the 1887 trial and well into the 1900s, and stories have been told of Sam’s unfound treasure for nearly 130 years. But, this is the first detailed, documented, and vetted account of their bizarre and fascinating tale.

    Confidential comes My Dark Places, an investigative autobiography by James Ellroy. In 1958, Ellroy's mother, Jean, was raped, killed, and dumped off a road in El Monte, California, a rundown L.A. suburb. The killer was never found, and the case was closed. It was a sordid, back-page homicide that no one remembered. Except her son.James Ellroy was ten years old when his mother died. His bereavement was complex and ambiguous: "I cried. I cranked tears out all the way to L.A. I hated her. I hated El Monte. Some unknown killer just bought me a brand-new beautiful life." He grew up obsessed with murdered women and crime. He ran from his mother's ghost.Ellroy became a writer of radically provocative and bestselling crime novels. "I wear obsession well," he says. "I've turned it into something." He tried to reclaim his mother through fiction. It didn't work. He quit running and wrote this memoir.My Dark Places is Jean and James Ellroy's story—from 1958 to all points past and up to this moment. It is the story of a brilliant homicide detective named Bill Stoner and of the investigation he and Ellroy undertook. It is also an unflinching autobiography with vivid reportage. This is James Ellroy's journey through his most forbidding memories.

    These are the true-life diary entries of a prison officer, working in one of the country’s worst correctional facility. The daily stabbings, rapes and murders are just the beginning of a nightmare ride into the darkness of life behind bars. It’s a raw and ruthless look behind the walls in all its brutal honesty. This is maximum-security.

    Deeply religious, he sent his kids to Catholic schools and colleges.He was also, by all appearances, a trusted and loyal FBI agent. For years he had helped the FBI counterintelligence team track and protect against Russian spies. He helped the FBI set up its computer networks. He had almost total access to the most sensitive material, including information about Russians who were secretly working for the U.S. He was in a position to betray more valuable secrets than almost anyone else.And he did.Now veteran Time reporters Ann Blackman and Elaine Shannon reveal the truth about Robert Hanssen and his 15 years of exceptionally destructive espionage. Blackman and Shannon brilliantly explore why Hanssen decided to betray his family, his church and his country, and how he got away with it. And they reveal the vast extent of Hanssen's damage and why his actions shattered the confidence of a proud and mighty FBI."The Spy Next Door" doesn't just read like a spy thriller -- it is a spy thriller, full of stolen documents, battling agents, secret dead drops, lies and deception. Shannon and Blackman delve into how Hanssen used his Catholicism as a Biblical subterfuge, a cover so clever that only his Communist confessors would be privy to the deception.

    . . and has never been convicted of racketeering, drug-trafficking or murder.Prize-winning journalists John Cummings and Ernest Volkman's shocking true account of the brutal and meteoric rise of John "Johhny Boy" Gotti from Brooklyn "bone-breaker" to lord of the Gambino Family -- a riveting exploration into the the bloody machinery of La Cosa Nostra operating on the dark side of the American dream.

    Based on years of research and interviews with imprisoned and recently released smugglers and the law enforcement agents who tracked them down, Jackpot does for marijuana smuggling what Blow and Snowblind did for the cocaine trade.

    Pistone carried out the most audacious sting operation ever, working undercover for six years to infiltrate the flamboyant community of mafia soldiers, "connected guys," captains, and godfathers. Now his unforgettable eyewitness account brings to pulsating life the entire world of wiseguys—their code of honor and their treachery, their wives, girlfriends and whores, their lavish spending and dirty dealings.With the drama and suspense of a high-tension thriller, Joseph Pistone reveals every incredible aspect of the jealously guarded world he penetrated...and draws a chilling picture of what the mafia is, does, and means in America today.

    Hailed for her lifesaving efforts by President Ulysses S. Grant, Admiral Dewey, Susan B. Anthony, and other luminaries of the day, Lewis was the first person awarded a Congressional medal for her years of bravery and extraordinary heroism. Weaving thrilling nautical adventures with tales of other female lighthouse keepers, this compelling biography opens a fascinating and previously unexplored chapter in the history of American women.

    Natale's reign atop the Philadelphia and New Jersey underworlds brought the region's mafia back to prominence in the 1990s. Smart, savvy, and articulate, Natale came up in the mob and saw first-hand as it hatched its plan to control Atlantic City's casino unions. Later on, after spending 16 years in prison, he reclaimed the family as his own after a bloody mob war that left bodies scattered across South Philly. He forged connections around the country, invigorated the family with more allies than it had in two decades, and achieved a status within the mob never seen before or since until he was betrayed by his men and decided to testify against them in a stunning turn of events.Using dozens of hours of interviews with Natale along with research and interviews with FBI agents, this book delivers revelatory insights into seminal events in American mob history, including: - The truth about Jimmy Hoffa's disappearance- The murder of Jewish mob icon Bugsy Siegel - The identity of the man who created modern-day Las VegasWith the full cooperation of Natale, New York Daily News reporter Larry McShane and producer Dan Pearson uncover the deadly reign of the last great mob boss of Philadelphia, a tale that covers a half-century of mob lore--and gore.

    In this true story, career policeman Jerry Speziale chronicles his fast-living years as one of the youngest recruits for the US Drug Enforcement Administration's task force - an odyssey of undercover intrigue, Colombian kingpins, amazing take-downs and nerve-jangling narrow escapes.